


GUILTY OR INNOCENT

by orphan_account



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Angst, Character Death, Hurt Sokka (Avatar), Other, Protective Katara (Avatar), Protective Toph Beifong, Protective Zuko (Avatar), im sorry i love this boy, sokka has issues, zuko loves his boy
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-10
Updated: 2020-08-10
Packaged: 2021-03-05 19:15:13
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 700
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25820461
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: The second he reaches the sky bison and is out of the group's line of sight, he allows the tears to fall. He falls to his knees, ignoring the pain that shot through him, and lets out a pained sob.
Relationships: Aang & Sokka (Avatar), Katara & Sokka (Avatar), Sokka & Suki (Avatar), Sokka & Zuko (Avatar), Sokka/Zuko (Avatar), Toph Beifong & Sokka
Comments: 5
Kudos: 78





	GUILTY OR INNOCENT

**Author's Note:**

> they all took down the airships and azula together so everyone's there when aang fights ozai

They had taken down a whole fleet of fire nation war balloons and had detained Azula not even fifteen minutes ago and yet none of them had made a move towards Ozai. Sure he was restrained by rocks and all but that was as far as they had gotten. All of them just stood around him, waiting for someone to take the final blow or just do something. It wasn’t like they couldn’t, he was right there for Spirits sake and nobody was preventing them from doing so, no, it was because they knew the only way to stop him was to end his life.

But they were just kids. 

Most of them weren’t even old enough to fight in war but the world threw them into it anyways. Not one of them could fathom murdering a person. They just weren’t like Azula or Jet and his freedom fighters. They weren’t the type to cause casualties no matter the cause, no matter the person. And yet that’s what was being asked of them. That’s what was being asked of children.

“Guys we can’t kill him, he’s still a person!”

Zuko ran a hand down his face, “What choice do we have, Aang?”

“It’s wrong!” Aang countered, his face full of indecisiveness.

Katara nodded, “He’s right. There has to be another way.”

“Well we can’t just arrest him! He’ll escape!” Suki threw her hands up in exasperation. 

“Suki’s right, Ozai’s too powerful of a bender, there’s no way he’d stay put.” Zuko agreed, looking every bit as undecided as the rest of the group.

“We have to kill him.” Toph may have said what she said but there was a waver in her voice that contradicted the statement.

“We can’t-”

Aang interrupted the watertribe girl before the argument could go any further, “I’ll do it.”

Zuko looked at the boy in shock. “What?”

“It’s my duty as the Avatar to bring peace to the nations, even if I have to kill to do so.”

Aang walked towards the power-crazed man before him, getting close enough to do the deed in question. He raised his arms, all four elements rising with them, and went to deliver the final blow but found that he couldn’t. He had one job as the Avatar and he hesitated. The airbender dropped his arms, everything falling behind him, and turned back to the group, “I- I can’t do this. It isn’t right.”

“We’ll just have to find another way.” Suki sighed.

“Spirits, forgive for what must be done.” Sokka says quietly, gently pulling Aang away from the man restrained in front of them.

He then walked towards Ozai, sword held over his shoulder, and bent down to whisper in his ear, “I don’t have any other choice.” He stood back up and looked at the puzzled look on the Phoenix King’s face. Returning the look with a resigned gaze, he grabbed the hull of his sword and brought it down between Ozai’s eyes, effectively splitting the former Firelord's head in half. He feels the blood hit his face with a sickening splat and it takes everything in him not to faint on spot. The gasps he hears from the group behind him are muted by the loud ringing in his ears. Before anyone could say anything to him, Sokka unlodged his sword with slight difficulty and walked back to Appa before anyone could see the tears welling up in his eyes.

The second he reaches the sky bison and is out of the group's line of sight, he allows the tears to fall. He falls to his knees, ignoring the pain that shot through him, and lets out a pained sob. He cries because he’s covered head to toe in blood that isn’t his. He cries because he can’t get the look of fear and sound of his sword hitting flesh out of his head. He cries because he didn’t even hesitate. He cries because even though it had to be done, he’ll never forgive himself. He cries because they had all watched him do it. He cries because he just killed a once living, breathing person. 

He cries because he’s fifteen and just killed a man.

**Author's Note:**

> AHAH,, MY BAD JUST LET ME INFLICT SOME PAIN ON THIS BOY


End file.
